N.H. woman summoned on heroin charges

DEERFIELD — A New Hampshire woman who police say conspired with a friend to bring 251 bags of heroin back to her home state has been summoned to court on drug charges.

State police have issued a summons for Amy-Jo Akin, 37, of Swanzey, N.H., to appear in court on charges of possession of heroin with intent to distribute, conspiracy to violate drug laws and being present where heroin is kept, according to trooper Noah Pack.

Diana Espaillat, 27, of Swanzey, N.H., was arrested after police pulled over a car driven by Akin on Oct. 17 on Interstate 91 and discovered 251 bags of heroin on Espaillat during a strip search, according to Pack’s police report.

Espaillat has been charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute and conspiracy to violate drug laws.

Akin recently called The Recorder to deny the allegations against her, which were published in a story on page C1 of Saturday’s Recorder. She said the police lied in their report.

Pack alleged Akin told troopers that she and Espaillat had gone to South Hadley to buy one bundle (10 bags) of heroin, which she said she uses to manage her pain.

Akin told The Recorder that she has never used heroin, and that she feared the article would cause her to lose her job.